Democrats are in a panic over President Biden’s recent presidential debate meltdown with former President Donald Trump. Some think the debate ended Biden’s political career, but are hopefully a worthy candidate could replace him if he steps down.
They have an easy top pick once they consider it: Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock.
It’s easy to see why. Not even Vice President Kamala Harris is smooth sailing ahead when it comes to her favorability. The 59-year-old often talks in riddles and has been accused of incoherent ramblings.
However, Harris’ position presents a dilemma for a party that is wedded to identity politics. Replacing Biden with a different white man might be fine, but taking the prize away from an older black woman would be a disaster. There have been whispers about the former First Lady Michelle Obama, but highly unlikely.
As a result, the alternative to a Biden-Harris ticket has one of three features. It needs first to be led by persons politically young and eloquent. The second is that the new ticket has to be liberal enough so as not to discourage party progressives. Third, it has to have a black person and another woman in there so this powerful interest group doesn’t get shunted off the side.
The Whitmer-Warnock ticket meets all three of these tests.
They’re quite young by the standard of presidential candidates. Each can speak well and pass the political test of potentially aligning moderates with liberals. Whitmer has been elected governor of Michigan twice, and Warnock won two incredibly competitive Senate races in Georgia.
If they can hold their states, former President Donald Trump would need to win three of the rest to narrowly prevail. This would also likely benefit Democrats since they have a troubling problem with black voters. With Warnock’s roots in the black church, this would leverage him among Black voters.
Together, they’d make history too. Whitmer-Warnock would form the first all-nonwhite, nonwhite-man major party ticket.
The only other serious alternative is California Governor Gavin Newsom. An engaging speaker, he treads the line of progressive-liberal. But then he would have to defend California’s abysmal record of spiraling crime, fiscal crises, and homelessness.
So far, Biden has chosen to continue weathering this storm while many Democrats hope he steps aside. There is a perfectly logical pick right under his nose.
